Maximilian Butek: German Companies Remain Confident in the Long-Term Value of Investing in China

Zita Lai, journalist for 21st Century Business Herald

Economic and trade cooperation continues to serve as a stabilizing anchor in China-Germany relations.

According to People’s Daily, a report released in May by Germany Trade & Invest (GTAI) shows that Chinese companies maintained strong investment momentum in Germany in 2023, with 199 new projects—making China the third-largest source of foreign investment projects in the country, trailing only the United States and Switzerland.

At the same time, German firms are stepping up their commitment to the Chinese market. Despite a 27.1% year-on-year decline in China’s total actual use of foreign capital in 2024, data from China’s Ministry of Commerce shows that German investment into China grew by 2.2%, including flows via free trade ports.

“Our member companies always think long-term but never short-term value when they invest in China. They understand that to stay competitive, continued investment in China is essential—not necessarily to expand capacity, but increasingly to focus on R&D,” said Maximilian Butek, Executive Director of the German Chamber of Commerce in China, in an exclusive interview with 21st Century Business Herald during the relocation ceremony of the German Chamber’s Guangzhou office.

As trade protectionism casts a shadow over the global economy, Maximilian emphasized that most German companies are family-owned companies. Therefore their investment decisions are made with a ten-year or even twenty-year horizon in mind, placing high value on a stable policy environment. “Any form of uncertainty is bad for businesses,” he noted.

The new Guangzhou office of the German Chamber of Commerce in China, which held its relocation ceremony recently, has been supporting German businesses in China since its establishment in 1996. It provides services such as industry analysis, policy consultation, and market promotion—especially aiding member companies in entering the Chinese market and navigating the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

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